Hello, travelers!
Last week, I took my 1,200th flight as a wheelchair user — a short hop from St. Louis to Chicago with American Airlines, en route to Knoxville, Tennessee. The flight was uneventful, just as I like it, and I had a wonderful journey.
It is no surprise that most wheelchair users are apprehensive about flying — but for me, even with all the frustrations and accessibility barriers, flying is a hobby and a joy. I'm an aviation geek.
My flight map is an exciting catalog of my travels, but the world is vast and there is still so much more to see. I always look forward to adding new routes and destinations to the map, and sharing those travels with you in this newsletter. Next month, I will be visiting the City of Innsbruck, Austria for the first time. I'm taking a train from Munich, so it won't appear on my flight map, but I am still excited to share the destination with you!
Which travel destination would you like me to cover next?
2024 Airline Rankings for Wheelchair Users 🏆
Each year, I have published a ranking of the best and worst U.S. airlines for disabled travelers, which are calculated using data published by the Department of Transportation.
The DOT has had issues with reporting over the past couple of years — important data points, including a report on the number of disability-related complaints filed against airlines, have not been released. As a result, this year's ranking is based solely on wheelchair damage statistics.
To see the ranking, check out the article Ranking the U.S. Airlines Most and Least Likely to Damage Wheelchairs and Scooters. You can see which airlines excel, and which lag behind on protecting precious mobility equipment. How does your preferred airline stack up?
Wheelchair Accessible Group Trips
Would you like to join me and fellow Wheelchair Travel readers on a wheelchair-friendly group tour of an exciting destination? There are still two wheelchair accessible rooms available on the September tour of Spain, and some unexpected cancellations for medical reasons have opened up space on two of the upcoming tours of Greece. View the itineraries and learn more here:
- May 3-12, 2025 Wheelchair Accessible Group Trip to Greece
- June 4-13, 2025 Wheelchair Accessible Group Trip to Greece
- September 9-18, 2025 Wheelchair Accessible Group Trip to Barcelona, Spain
Has the love run out at Southwest Airlines? 💔
"Bags fly free." The trademarked slogan has appeared in many Southwest Airlines advertising campaigns, but it won't be true come May 28, 2025. The carrier announced a shakeup to the way it does business, and it will soon be charging fees for services it previously offered for free.
Southwest has long been wheelchair users' favorite airline, due in large part to the carrier's open seating policy and the ability for wheelchair users to transfer directly into the front row bulkhead seats — but with an end to open seating and charges to select seats, will the carrier still serve people with disabilities?
I reached out to the airline for comment — read what they said about accommodating disabled passengers in this article: Big Changes at Southwest Make It Like Every Other Airline (Almost).
The headline/subject line of this newsletter is a reference to Elton John's 1976 duet with English singer Kiki Dee, and a riff on Southwest's iconic heart logo. I had never seen the music video before today and what a treat it was! Elton John was just 29 years old when he recorded this music video.
Wheelchair Accessible Poconos Treetop Lakehouse Vacation Rental
Wheelchair Travel reader Mana Hunt reached out asking me to share her incredibly adapted lakehouse in the Poconos, and I am excited to do so! Here's what she had to say about the property:
As a wheelchair user and mother, I had always looked for an accessible vacation rental that I could enjoy with my family in the Poconos. Unfortunately, I could never find a rental property that was truly accessible. I was disappointed time and time again after going to a rental which I was assured was accessible only to find that I could not take part in many of the areas of the house or activities with my family. I decided that I would make such a vacation home myself.
The homes in the Poconos are beautifully situated in nature but because of the high levels of snow in the winter, they are usually elevated. After scouring many sites, I found my dream vacation home right on a lake. Once we purchased the home, I spent six months renovating it to be truly accessible for wheelchair users — and myself! We wheelchair users often have to settle on accommodations that are either not truly accessible or accessible but not beautiful. With our vacation home, I was able to create both. After our first family vacation at the home, I realized that I wanted to share it with others.
Mana's home was chosen by Airbnb to be featured in its Adaptable category, and they dispatched a crew to photograph its accessible features.
To learn more about the property and its accessible features, including an elevator, roll-in shower and ramped entrances, or to make a reservation for your next family vacation, check out the full article, Vacation Rental: Wheelchair Accessible Poconos Treetop Lakehouse, or visit the Airbnb listing.
Weekly News Roundups 🗞️
The accessible travel news roundup was a longtime feature of this blog, but it ended during the pandemic. I am excited to bring it back — these weekly roundups, published on Fridays, will highlight interesting and important stories from the past week that are worth sharing, but not suited for dedicated, long-form coverage on this website.
Here are a couple of the latest roundups, each packed with interesting stories:
John Morris
John Morris
Looking ahead 👀
Keep an eye out for another email tomorrow — it will contain some personal news that I look forward to sharing and that I hope you will enjoy reading. I can barely contain my excitement!
I will be setting off for Europe in just a few days, where I plan to make stops in London, the Munich region and Innsbruck before traveling to Hamburg for major aviation conferences. As I shared in the last newsletter, I will be speaking on two panels at the Passenger Experience Conference, where I have been asked to discuss the priorities for accessible air travel.
Be sure to check your inboxes tomorrow, and I look forward to speaking to you from Europe!
Have a great week,
— John
Would you like to support WheelchairTravel.org and the work I am doing to make travel more accessible? Please consider upgrading to a paid membership or making a one-time or recurring gift via PayPal.
